Vehicle climate control system with heat recovery utilizing a heat pump

ABSTRACT

An electric or hybrid electric vehicle has a climate control system using a heat pump having a condenser heat exchanger that exchanges heat between refrigerant and working fluid within a hot fluid chamber, and an evaporator heat exchanger that exchanges heat between refrigerant and working fluid within a cold fluid chamber. An insulated fluid reservoir may be in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber, and has a Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC) heater that may be powered by a drivetrain battery or by a shore power source. The hot fluid chamber provides heat to at least one cabin heat exchanger and to at least one ambient air heat exchanger. The cold fluid chamber is connected to at least one vehicle interior cooling module, to a liquid cooled heat sink that cools the electric motor and power electronics of the vehicle, and to a cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger.

BACKGROUND

This disclosure relates to electric and hybrid electric drive vehicles,and in particular it relates to a climate control system arrangement andmethod utilizing a heat pump for such vehicles.

RELATED ART

A full electric wheeled vehicle, such as a car or truck, is propelledsolely by one or more electric motors, sometimes referred to as atraction motor. A hybrid electric wheeled vehicle is propelled by one ormore electric motors or traction motors, in conjunction with anotherpower source, such as an internal combustion engine, as a non-limitingexample. The traction motor draws electric current from an on-boardsource of electricity, such as a battery or capacitor bank. Presently,the storage capacity of such batteries or capacitor banks is limited,such that the vehicle has a range of travel when operating underelectric propulsion that is limited not only by how it is driven and thephysical characteristics of the geographical area within which ittravels, but also by the amount of on-board stored energy that theonboard source of electricity can deliver to the motor.

Because the propulsion system of a full electric wheeled vehicle lacksan internal combustion engine, and therefore also lacks an enginecooling system through which liquid coolant circulates, hot liquidcoolant is unavailable for heating the interior of the cabin, cab, orpassenger compartment. Similarly, the propulsion system of a hybridelectric wheeled vehicle may operate for significant periods of timewithout operation of the internal combustion engine, so thatinsufficient heat is provided by the circulating liquid coolant of theengine coolant system for heating the interior of the cabin, cab, orpassenger compartment. Nevertheless, heating of the cabin, cab, orpassenger compartment is necessary, not only for the comfort of theoccupants, but also for the purpose of defrosting the vehicle windows.Therefore, it is known to provide another source of heat, such aselectric heaters, within the vehicle Heating Ventilation and AirConditioning (HVAC) system. Additionally, air conditioning inconventional non-electric vehicles is generally provided by an airconditioning compressor that is mechanically driven by the internalcombustion engine. Because a full electric wheeled vehicle lacks aninternal combustion engine, and because the internal combustion engineof a hybrid electric vehicle may be turned off for significant periodsof time, it is necessary to provide an alternate source of cooling forthe cab, cabin, or passenger compartment for such vehicles when airconditioning is desired.

Electric heaters used to heat the cab, cabin, or passenger compartmentof full electric or hybrid electric vehicles typically draw electriccurrent from the same on-board source of electricity that suppliescurrent to the traction motor that propels the vehicle. Similarly, anyelectrically operated alternate source of cooling for the cab, cabin, orpassenger compartment of a full electric or hybrid electric vehicle alsotypically draws electric current from the same on-board source ofelectricity that supplies current to the traction motor that propels thevehicle. Therefore, heating and cooling of the cab, cabin, or passengercompartment of a full electric or hybrid electric vehicle, includingdefrosting of the vehicle windows, is accomplished at the expense oflimiting the vehicle's range of travel under electric power, due to thefinite quantity of electrical energy that is stored in the on-boardsource of electricity. Furthermore, independent of battery chemistry,battery cycle life is typically a non-linear function of repeateddepth-of-discharge, and therefore is a non-linear indirect function ofHVAC system efficiency. For example, for an AGM battery system, a 20%increase in the efficiency, or Coefficient of Performance (COP), of abattery operated engine-off HVAC system may result in a 50% increase inoverall battery charge-discharge cycle life.

Accordingly, there is an unmet need for a system and method forproviding energy efficient heating and cooling of the cabin, cab, orpassenger compartment of a full electric or hybrid electric wheeledvehicle, in order to conserve electric power within the on-board sourceof electricity and extend the range of travel of the full electric orhybrid electric wheeled vehicle.

SUMMARY

According to one embodiment of the Vehicle Climate Control System withHeat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, an electric or hybrid electricvehicle has a climate control system. The basic climate control systemas shown in FIG. 1 and discussed in greater detail hereinafter includesa heat pump having a refrigerant compressor, a condenser heat exchanger,an expansion valve, and an evaporator heat exchanger. The condenser heatexchanger exchanges heat between refrigerant and working fluid within ahot fluid chamber. The evaporator heat exchanger exchanges heat betweenrefrigerant and working fluid within a cold fluid chamber. An insulatedfluid reservoir may selectively be placed in fluid communication withthe cold fluid chamber. The insulated fluid reservoir has a PositiveTemperature Coefficient (PTC) heater that may be powered by a drivetrainbattery unit or by a shore power source for the purpose of deliveringcabin heat and for improving the efficiency or COP of the system duringcold ambient environmental conditions, i.e.—ambient temperatures thatare less than 30 degrees Fahrenheit. A cold fluid chamber to outsideheat exchanger may also selectively be placed in fluid communicationwith the cold fluid chamber.

According to another embodiment of the Vehicle Climate Control Systemwith Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, a climate control system of anelectric or hybrid electric vehicle includes a heat pump having arefrigerant compressor, a condenser heat exchanger, an expansion valve,and an evaporator heat exchanger. The condenser heat exchanger exchangesheat between refrigerant and working fluid within a hot fluid chamber.The evaporator heat exchanger exchanges heat between refrigerant andworking fluid within a cold fluid chamber. An insulated fluid reservoirmay selectively be placed in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber. The insulated fluid reservoir has a PTC heater that may bepowered by a drivetrain battery unit or a shore power source. A coldfluid chamber to outside heat exchanger may also selectively be placedin fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber.

According to another embodiment of the Vehicle Climate Control Systemwith Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, a method of providing climatecontrol in an occupant compartment of an electric or hybrid electricvehicle includes several steps. The first step is providing a heat pumphaving a refrigerant compressor, a condenser heat exchanger, anexpansion valve, and an evaporator heat exchanger. The second step isexchanging heat between refrigerant and working fluid within a hot fluidchamber by way of the condenser heat exchanger, and exchanging heatbetween refrigerant and working fluid within a cold fluid chamber by wayof the evaporator heat exchanger. The third step is selectively placingan insulated fluid reservoir in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber using an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump,and/or selectively placing the insulated fluid reservoir in fluidcommunication with the hot fluid chamber using an insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump. The fourth step is selectivelyheating working fluid within the insulated fluid reservoir using a PTCheater by selectively powering the PTC heater from a drivetrain batteryunit by way of a drive train battery connector or from a shore powersource by way of a shore power contactor. The fifth step is selectivelyplacing the hot fluid chamber in fluid communication with at least onecabin heat exchanger using a hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchangerpump, with at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchangerPTC heater using a hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluidheat exchanger PTC heater pump, and/or with at least one ambient airheat exchanger using a hot fluid chamber to ambient air heat exchangerpump. The sixth step is selectively placing the cold fluid chamber influid communication with at least one vehicle interior cooling moduleusing a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump. Theseventh step is selectively placing a liquid cooled heat sink in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber or the hot fluid chamber usinga liquid cooled heat sink pump and at least one control valve, theliquid cooled heat sink being connected to an electric drive motor ofthe vehicle and/or power electronics connected to the electric drivemotor. The eighth step is selectively placing a cold fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber using a cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, asdescribed herein;

FIG. 2 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, asdescribed herein;

FIG. 3 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, asdescribed herein;

FIG. 4 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System Utilizing a Heat Pump, as described herein;

FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, asdescribed herein; and

FIG. 6 is a graphical representation of an embodiment of a VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery with Heat Recovery Utilizing aHeat Pump, as described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments described herein relate to a Vehicle Climate Control Systemwith Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump and methods for the usethereof. The system and method may be applied to various types ofelectric and hybrid electric vehicles, such as highway or semi-tractors,straight trucks, busses, fire trucks, agricultural vehicles, railtravelling vehicles, and etcetera. The several embodiments of theVehicle Climate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pumpand method for the use thereof presented herein are employed on vehicleshaving an electric drivetrain, but this is not to be construed aslimiting the scope of the system and method, which may be applied tovehicles and engines of differing construction.

In at least one embodiment, this disclosure introduces a climate controlsystem for the interior of a cabin of a wheeled vehicle that ispropelled by an electric traction motor that draws electricity from anon-board source of electricity. The basic climate control system asshown in FIG. 1 and discussed in greater detail hereinafter includes aheat pump that can provide both heating and cooling of the cabininterior. When the heat pump operates, a refrigerant compressor drawsevaporated refrigerant from an outlet of a cold side heat exchanger andcompresses the refrigerant to force liquid refrigerant to flow through ahot side heat exchanger, in order to reject heat, and thereafter to aninlet of an expansion valve. An outlet of the expansion valve is open toan inlet of a cold side heat exchanger to allow the refrigerant toexpand and boil, in order to absorb heat as it passes through the coldside heat exchanger. The refrigerant then exits to complete therefrigerant circuit back to refrigerant compressor. This creates atemperature difference between the hot side heat exchanger and the coldside heat exchanger.

While the heat pump is operated by its own electric motor that drawselectric current from the same on-board source of electricity as theelectric traction motor when the vehicle is being driven, the heatingefficiency of a heat pump is significantly greater than that of anelectric heater, and its cooling efficiency is significantly greaterthan that of the typical air conditioning system of a vehicle propelledby a fuel burning prime mover. Current heat pump technology can providea COP (coefficient of performance) in the range of about 3.5, meaningthat for one watt of energy input, the heat pump can provide about 3.5watts of heat output for heating and a similar cooling output forcooling. Heat pump performance can also be characterized by an EER(energy efficiency rating), calculated by dividing the BTU heating orcooling output by the power input in watts.

When used for heating, the COP of an air sourced heat pump decreases asthe outside temperature decreases. For example, when the heat pump isbeing used for heating, and the ambient temperature is 70 degreesFahrenheit, the COP of the heat pump may be in the range of 4.0. As theambient temperature decreases, the COP of the heat pump decreases in alinear relationship. When the ambient temperature is about zero degreesFahrenheit, the COP of the heat pump may be no greater than thatachievable using resistive heating, i.e.—having a COP equal to 1.0. Atzero degrees Fahrenheit, the ambient temperature is nearly at theboiling point of the refrigerant, so that gaseous refrigerant is beingproduced at low volume and pressure, causing the drop in efficiency atthe heat pump and reduced overall system efficiency. Nevertheless,sufficient refrigerant boiling to increase efficiency over resistiveheating occurs at about 10 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

By adding heat to the system using a Positive Temperature Coefficient(PTC) heater, which may be a resistive heating device, the VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump andmethods for the use thereof raises the COP of the heat pump under lowtemperature conditions for the purpose of delivering cabin heat andimproving efficiency of the system during cold ambient environmentalconditions, i.e.—ambient temperatures that are less than 30 degreesFahrenheit. For example, using a PTC heater, the system and methodsacrifices a COP of 1, but obtains a heat pump COP of 2.5, instead ofthe COP of 1 attainable using the PTC heater alone. In other words, inthis example, the system and method expends 1 watt in order to get 2.5watts of heating. This may be accomplished by heating a working fluid,as will be explained further. This further allows for stabilizing theCOP of the heat pump, thereby enabling the selection of a heat pumpcompressor of more efficient size. Ultimately, this may result in amarkedly increased battery cycle life according to the principlediscussed previously wherein battery cycle life is a non-linear indirectfunction of HVAC system efficiency.

In a conventional heat pump arrangement, such as for example aresidential heat pump arrangement, when operating in heating mode theevaporator draws heat directly from the ambient air and the condenserrejects heat directly to the heated inside air. When operating incooling mode, the evaporator draws heat directly from the conditionedinside air and the condenser rejects heat directly to the ambient air.As noted previously, however, when the evaporator temperature falls farenough, the refrigerant approaches its evaporation temperature, reducingthe efficiency of the system. In the several embodiments of the VehicleClimate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump andmethod for the use thereof presented herein, each of the evaporator andthe condenser is situated within a chamber having a working fluid suchas water or an alcohol and water mix, in order to avoid freezing. Thechamber containing the evaporator becomes, therefore, the cold fluidchamber, and the chamber containing the condenser becomes the hot fluidchamber.

In order raise the overall efficiency of the system when operating in aheating mode, the Vehicle Climate Control System with Heat RecoveryUtilizing a Heat Pump and method for the use thereof may use severalmethods to raise the fluid temperature of the cold fluid chambercontaining the evaporator. This may be accomplished using heat extractedfrom the ambient air. This may further be accomplished using waste heat,such as heat rejected by electronic and electro-mechanical components ofthe full electric or hybrid electric vehicle, for non-limiting exampleheat rejected by the electric drive motor and/or its power electronics.The system and method may further increase operating efficiency byraising the fluid temperature of the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir using heated fluid stored in an insulated fluid reservoir. Thefluid stored in the insulated fluid reservoir may be preheated in apreconditioning operation while the vehicle is plugged into shore power.Alternately, the fluid stored in the insulated fluid reservoir may evenbe heated using the vehicle on-board source of electricity. In eachcase, the resulting climate control system will deliver a higher COPthan a conventional air sourced heat pump or by vehicle interior heatingusing conventional electrical resistance heaters. This results in lessenergy needed for heating and cooling operations, and mitigates drivingrange reduction often resulting from HVAC system operation.

For example, COP decreases linearly with decreasing temperature, so thata baseline COP may be 4.2 at 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and may be 1.0 at 0degrees Fahrenheit. Under an ambient condition of 40 degrees Fahrenheit,an air sourced heat pump may have a COP of 2.8. For a 40,000 BTU/Hr(11.71 Kw) delivered capacity heat pump at 70 degrees Fahrenheit, at 40degrees Fahrenheit the delivered capacity becomes 26,667 BTU/Hr and thepower input is 2.79 Kw. If the compressor capacity is increased to bringthe delivered output to 40,000 BTU/Hr at 40 degrees Fahrenheit, then thesystem electrical input must be increased to 4.19 Kw. However, ifsupplemental heat is added to the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir of the Vehicle Climate Control System with Heat RecoveryUtilizing a Heat Pump, the total electrical input becomes 3.72 Kw andthe COP of the system becomes 3.16. Consequently, for 40,000 BTU/Hrdelivered under these conditions, the Vehicle Climate Control Systemwith Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump uses 2S% less energy.

Furthermore, under an ambient condition of 20 degrees Fahrenheit, thesystem COP of an air sourced heat pump decreases to 1.87 requiring apower input of 2.78 Kw. To maintain 40,000 BTU/Hr at 20 degreesFahrenheit, the compressor input of an air sourced heat pump must beincreased to 6.25 Kw. However, if supplemental heat is added to the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir of the Vehicle Climate ControlSystem with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pump, the total electricalinput becomes 4.92 KW and the resulting system COP becomes 2.38.Consequently, for 40,000 BTU/Hr delivered under these conditions, theVehicle Climate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a Heat Pumpuses 21% less energy.

The Vehicle Climate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a HeatPump is further capable of preconditioning the vehicle cabin interiorand defrosting vehicle windows under cold weather conditions using a PTCheater and an insulated fluid reservoir. This preconditioning involvesadding heat to the insulated fluid reservoir via the PTC heater, whichdraws its power from a shore power source, and helps to raise the COP ofthe system. When the vehicle is disconnected from utility power, heatedfluid stored in the insulated fluid reservoir is pumped to the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir, in order to maintain theincreased COP of the system. Preconditioning by using shore power toheat the working fluid in the insulated cold fluid reservoir helps tomaintain a reasonable cabin temperature in advance of vehicle operation,and avoids high energy usage during initial cabin heating during coldambient conditions.

The fluid stored in the insulated fluid reservoir, as well as the fluidstored in the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir, may further beprecooled in the preconditioning operation while the vehicle is pluggedinto shore power under hot weather conditions. In this preconditioningoperation, outside air and cabin air temperatures may be measured, andif a specified differential temperature is exceeded, an HVACrecirculation system may operate to remove hot air from the vehicleinterior, in exchange for cooler air taken from the exteriorenvironment. The recirculation fans of the HVAC recirculation system maybe powered by variable speed motors, so that power used by therecirculation fans may be controlled to avoid excessive batterydischarge over a given time period. For example, the power to be used bythe recirculation fans may be set to correspond to a 20% discharge ofthe drive train battery unit over six hours of operation, therebyinsuring that the vehicle battery system will retain enough charge tostart the vehicle engine, if applicable.

When the vehicle is subsequently operated with air conditioning active,the precooled fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir, as well as theprecooled fluid in the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir, isutilized by the vehicle interior cooling module in initially cooling theinterior of the vehicle cabin. This further avoids high energy usageduring initial cabin cooling, or “pull down,” during high temperatureambient conditions upon initial vehicle start-up. Specifically, storingand utilizing precooled fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir and inthe cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir reduces electrical powerdemand from the drive train battery unit, since the cold fluid iscapable of absorbing approximately one BTU per pound degree Fahrenheit.Additionally, the precooled fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir andin the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir may be furtherutilized to control the temperatures of drive train traction motors,drive train power electronics, and/or the drive train battery unit.

Preconditioning may take place automatically whenever the vehicle isplugged in to shore power, or may be initiated by the driver, forexample by the driver using a remote device such as a remote fob or cellphone to call for the vehicle to be ready to operate at a given time ofday. Preconditioning in fleet vehicles, such as school transportationvehicles, may be initiated by a timer. In either case, as a non-limitingexample, the vehicle system controller would then calculate the BTUsthat should be added or removed from the cabin in order to obtain atemperature and humidity condition that is within the comfort zone ofthe driver at the specified time. Similarly, the drivetrain battery unitmay be heated or cooled as necessary. For example, lithium ion batterieslose operational capacity at low temperatures, so that preheating isappropriate under low ambient temperature conditions. Depending uponambient temperatures, battery precooling may be appropriate inanticipation of temperature control during upcoming high demandoperation under high ambient temperature conditions.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a graphical representation of the primarycomponents of an embodiment of a Vehicle Climate Control SystemUtilizing a Heat Pump is shown. A full electric or hybrid electricvehicle (not shown) includes a climate control system 10 using a heatpump 50. The heat pump 50 includes a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) heatpump refrigerant compressor 200, a condenser heat exchanger 302, anexpansion valve 104, and an evaporator heat exchanger 102. The VFD heatpump refrigerant compressor 200 may be configured to provide variablespeed and/or variable capacity functionality. The VFD heat pumprefrigerant compressor 200 discharges compressed gaseous refrigerant tothe condenser heat exchanger 302 by way of a refrigerant discharge line208. The compressed gaseous refrigerant condenses and rejects heat tothe working fluid in a hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300using the condenser heat exchanger 302, and then proceeds to theexpansion valve 104 by way of the refrigerant liquid line 210. Afterpassing through the expansion valve 104, the refrigerant boils andabsorbs heat from the working fluid in a cold fluid chamber orevaporator reservoir 100 using the evaporator heat exchanger 102, beforereturning to the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 by way of therefrigerant suction line 206.

An insulated fluid reservoir 400 is in fluid communication with the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 by way of an insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber line 402 and a cold fluid chamber lineto insulated fluid reservoir return line 406. Working fluid may beselectively circulated between the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and thecold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 using an insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404. Similarly, the insulated fluidreservoir 400 may be in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamberor condenser reservoir 300 by way of an insulated fluid reservoir to hotfluid chamber line 410 and a hot fluid chamber line to insulated fluidreservoir return line 414. Working fluid may be selectively circulatedbetween the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 using an insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluidchamber pump 412.

Working fluid within the insulated fluid reservoir 400 may beselectively heated by an insulated fluid reservoir Positive TemperatureCoefficient (PTC) heater 612. The insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater612 is connected to a shore power source 600 by way of a shore powerline 602 having a shore power contactor 604. When the shore powercontactor 604 is closed, the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612draws power from the shore power source 600, and when the shore powercontactor 604 is open, the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 isisolated from the shore power source 600. The insulated fluid reservoirPTC heater 612 is also connected to a drive train battery unit 608 byway of a drive train battery line 616 having a drive train batterycontactor 610. When the drive train battery contactor 610 is closed, theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 draws power from the drivetrain battery unit 608, and when the drive train battery contactor 610is open, the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is isolated fromthe drive train battery unit 608. A charging system 606 selectivelyconnects the drive train battery unit 608 to the shore power source 600as needed for recharging.

At least one cabin heat exchanger 310 is in fluid communication with thehot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of at least one hotfluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger line 306 and at least one cabinheat exchanger to hot fluid chamber return line 312. Working fluid maybe selectively circulated between the hot fluid chamber or condenserreservoir 300 and the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 using atleast one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308. Similarly,at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater318 is in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber 300 by way ofat least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater line 314 and at least one defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater to hot fluid chamber return line 320.Working fluid may be selectively circulated between the hot fluidchamber or condenser reservoir 300 and the at least one defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater 318 using a hot fluidchamber to defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heaterpump 316. The use of at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater 318, which may be a combination heat exchanger andelectrical resistance heater, may allow the vehicle to comply withwindshield defrosting requirements, while still enabling the selectionof a VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 sized for maximumefficiency.

At least one outside heat exchanger 326 is also in fluid communicationwith the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of at leastone hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger line 322 and at leastone outside heat exchanger to hot fluid chamber return line 328. Workingfluid may be selectively circulated between the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 and the at least one outside heat exchanger 326using a hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324. Similarly,at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114 may be in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 byway of at least one cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules line 108 and at least one vehicle interior cooling modules tocold fluid chamber return line 112. Working fluid may be selectivelycirculated between the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114 using a coldfluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump 110.

The climate control system 10, which is illustrated in FIG. 1 in itsbasic form, is capable of providing cabin heating by operating the atleast one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308 and the atleast one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater pump 316 to deliver hot fluid to the at least onecabin heat exchanger 310 and to the at least one defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater 318, respectively, while thehot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324 is not operating.The climate control system 10 is further capable of providing cabincooling by operating the hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump 324 and the at least one outside heat exchanger 326, while the atleast one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308 and the atleast one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater pump 316 are not operating. The insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404 may in this case remaininactive. The cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modulespump 110 and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114 thendeliver cooling to the cabin interior. In these basic heating or coolingmodes of operation, the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and the insulatedfluid reservoir PTC heater 612 are not used.

Each of the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200, the insulatedfluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404, the insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412, the shore power contactor 604,the drive train battery contactor 610, the cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump 110, the hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump 308, the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, and the hot fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger pump 324 are controlled directly or indirectly bya system controller 12. The system controller 12 is connected to the VFDheat pump refrigerant compressor 200 by way of a compressor VFD controloutput 16, which is connected to a refrigerant compressor VFD controlinput 204 of a refrigerant compressor variable frequency drive control202, which is in turn connected to the VFD heat pump refrigerantcompressor 200. The refrigerant compressor variable frequency drivecontrol 202 also receives power from the drive train battery unit 608 byway of a battery output to refrigerant compressor 614, which isconnected to the refrigerant compressor variable frequency drive control202 by way of a refrigerant compressor battery input 212.

The system controller 12 is connected to the insulated fluid reservoirto cold fluid chamber pump 404, to the insulated fluid reservoir to hotfluid chamber pump 412, to the cold fluid chamber to vehicle interiorcooling modules pump 110, to the hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump 308, to the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, and to the hotfluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324 by way of pump controloutputs 20. The system controller 12 is connected to the shore powercontactor 604 and to the drive train battery contactor 610 by way ofcontactor outputs 18. In order to properly manage the climate controlsystem 10, the system controller 12 is further provided with temperatureinputs 14 and solenoid valve outputs 22, the purpose and operation ofwhich will be explained in further detail.

As shown in FIG. 1, the climate control system 10 is configured forpreconditioning under low ambient temperatures. The shore powercontactor 604 is closed and the drive train battery contactor 610 isopen, so that the working fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir 400 isbeing heated by the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 usingelectrical power from the shore power source 600. The insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404 may be active, circulatingworking fluid between the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100, thereby increasing thetemperature of the evaporator heat exchanger 102 and raising the COP ofthe heat pump 50. During the preconditioning operation, the VFD heatpump refrigerant compressor 200 may be running, thereby pumping heatfrom the evaporator heat exchanger 102 to the condenser heat exchanger302, cooling the working fluid in the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and heating the working fluid in the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300.

Alternately, because efficiency may not be as high of a concern duringpreconditioning, the insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump412 may be active, circulating working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir 400 and the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300directly. In either case, the at least one hot fluid chamber to cabinheat exchanger pump 308 and/or the at least one hot fluid chamber todefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316 maybe active, using the heated working fluid in the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 passing through the at least one cabin heatexchanger 310 and/or through the at least one defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater 318 to heat the interior of the vehicleand/or to defrost the vehicle windows. The cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump 110 and the hot fluid chamber to outsideheat exchanger pump 324 remain inactive.

Turning now to FIGS. 2 through 5, graphical representations ofembodiments of a Vehicle Climate Control System Utilizing a Heat Pumpare shown. A full electric or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown) againincludes a climate control system 10 using a heat pump 50. The heat pump50 again includes a VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200, acondenser heat exchanger 302, an expansion valve 104, and an evaporatorheat exchanger 102. The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 againdischarges compressed gaseous refrigerant to the condenser heatexchanger 302 by way of a refrigerant discharge line 208. The compressedgaseous refrigerant again condenses and rejects heat to the workingfluid in a hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 using thecondenser heat exchanger 302, and then proceeds to the expansion valve104 by way of the refrigerant liquid line 210. After passing through theexpansion valve 104, the refrigerant again boils and absorbs heat fromthe working fluid in a cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100using the evaporator heat exchanger 102, before returning to the VFDheat pump refrigerant compressor 200 by way of the refrigerant suctionline 206.

An insulated fluid reservoir 400 is again in fluid communication withthe cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 by way of aninsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber line 402 and a coldfluid chamber line to insulated fluid reservoir return line 406. Workingfluid may again be selectively circulated between the insulated fluidreservoir 400 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100using an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404. Theinsulated fluid reservoir is again in fluid communication with the hotfluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of an insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber line 410 and a hot fluid chamber line toinsulated fluid reservoir return line 414. Working fluid may again beselectively circulated between the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and thehot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 using an insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412.

Working fluid within the insulated fluid reservoir 400 may again beselectively heated by an insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612. Theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is again connected to a shorepower source 600 by way of a shore power line 602 having a shore powercontactor 604. As before, when the shore power contactor 604 is closed,the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 draws power from the shorepower source 600, and when the shore power contactor 604 is open, theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is isolated from the shorepower source 600. The insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is againalso connected to a drive train battery unit 608 by way of a drive trainbattery line 616 having a drive train battery contactor 610. As before,when the drive train battery contactor 610 is closed, the insulatedfluid reservoir PTC heater 612 draws power from the drive train batteryunit 608, and when the drive train battery contactor 610 is open, theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is isolated from the drivetrain battery unit 608. A charging system 606 again selectively connectsthe drive train battery unit 608 to the shore power source 600 as neededfor recharging.

At least one cabin heat exchanger 310 is again in fluid communicationwith the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of at leastone hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger line 306 and at least onecabin heat exchanger to hot fluid chamber return line 312. Working fluidmay again be selectively circulated between the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 and the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310using a hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308. As before,at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater318 is in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber or condenserreservoir 300 by way of at least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater line 314 and at least onedefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater to hot fluidchamber return line 320. Working fluid may again be selectivelycirculated between the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 andthe at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTCheater 318 using a hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluidheat exchanger PTC heater pump 316.

At least one outside heat exchanger 326 is again in fluid communicationwith the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of at leastone hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger line 322 and at leastone outside heat exchanger to hot fluid chamber return line 328. Workingfluid may again be selectively circulated between the hot fluid chamberor condenser reservoir 300 and the at least one outside heat exchanger326 using a hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324. Asbefore, at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114 is in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 byway of at least one cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules line 108 and at least one vehicle interior cooling modules tocold fluid chamber return line 112. Working fluid may again beselectively circulated between the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114using a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump 110.

The full electric or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown) includes anelectric drive motor 500 and associated power electronics (not shown),which is heated and/or cooled using a liquid cooled heat sink 502.Another similar liquid cooled heat sink (not shown) may function to heatand/or cool the drivetrain battery unit 608. Such cooling of theelectric drive motor 500 and associated power electronics using theliquid cooled heat sink 502 may be required, as the net efficiency ofthe electric drive motor 500 and its associated power electronics may bein the range of ninety percent under a wide range of ambient conditions.The liquid cooled heat sink 502 is in fluid communication with the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 by way of a heat sink pump tocold fluid chamber line 514 and a cold fluid chamber to heat sink returnline 518. The liquid cooled heat sink 502 is also in fluid communicationwith the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of a heatsink pump to hot fluid chamber line 508 and a hot fluid chamber to heatsink return line 512.

Working fluid may be selectively circulated between the liquid cooledheat sink 502 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 byopening a heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 andusing a liquid cooled heat sink pump 506. Working fluid may also beselectively circulated between the liquid cooled heat sink 502 and thehot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by opening a heat sink pumpto hot fluid chamber control valve 510 and using the liquid cooled heatsink pump 506. The liquid cooled heat sink pump 506 may be variablecapacity, or may be operated in an on-off mode. If present, the liquidcooled heat sink (not shown) that functions to heat and/or cool thedrivetrain battery unit 608 may similarly be provided with fluidcircuits and a pump connecting it to the cold fluid chamber orevaporator reservoir 100 and/or the hot fluid chamber or condenserreservoir 300. The pump circulating working fluid from the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 to the liquid cooled heat sink thatfunctions to heat and/or cool the drivetrain battery unit 608 may be apositive displacement pump, and may be capable of circulating fluid at acontrolled rate, in order to control the rate of heat transfer from thedrivetrain battery unit 608.

Each of the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200, the insulatedfluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404, the insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412, the shore power contactor 604,the drive train battery contactor 610, the cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump 110, the hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump 308, the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, the hot fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger pump 324, the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506,the heat sink pump to hot fluid chamber control valve 510, and the heatsink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 are again controlleddirectly or indirectly by a system controller 12. The system controller12 is again connected to the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 byway of a compressor VFD control output 16, which is again connected to arefrigerant compressor VFD control input 204 of a refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202, which is in turn connected to theVFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200. The refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202 again receives power from the drivetrain battery unit 608 by way of a battery output to refrigerantcompressor 614, which is connected to the refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202 by way of a refrigerant compressorbattery input 212.

The system controller 12 is again connected to the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404, to the insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412, to the cold fluid chamber tovehicle interior cooling modules pump 110, to the hot fluid chamber tocabin heat exchanger pump 308, to the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, to the hot fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324, and to the liquid cooledheat sink pump 506 by way of pump control outputs 20. Alternately, theliquid cooled heat sink pump 506 may utilize a closed loop control, inorder to separately maintain the liquid cooled heat sink 502 and theelectric drive motor 500 and associated electronics in a temperaturerange calculated to result in optimum efficiency of the electric drivemotor 500 and associated power electronics. The system controller 12 isagain connected to the shore power contactor 604 and to the drive trainbattery contactor 610 by way of contactor outputs 18. The systemcontroller 12 is connected to the heat sink pump to hot fluid chambercontrol valve 510 and to the heat sink pump to cold fluid chambercontrol valve 516 by way of solenoid valve outputs 22. In order toproperly manage the climate control system 10, the system controller 12is again provided with temperature inputs 14 that are connected to acold fluid chamber temperature sensor 106, to a hot fluid chambertemperature sensor 304, to an insulated fluid reservoir temperaturesensor 408, and to a liquid cooled heat sink temperature sensor 504.

As shown in FIG. 2, the climate control system 10 is again configuredfor preconditioning under low ambient temperatures. In this mode, theclimate control system brings and maintains the vehicle cabin at acomfortable temperature level prior to operation, along with providing adefrost/defog function. The shore power contactor 604 is closed and thedrive train battery contactor 610 is open, so that the working fluid inthe insulated fluid reservoir 400 is being heated by the insulated fluidreservoir PTC heater 612 using electrical power from the shore powersource 600. The insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404may be active, circulating working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir 400 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100,thereby increasing the temperature of the evaporator heat exchanger 102and raising the COP of the heat pump 50 and maintaining the COP at aconstant level when in the heating mode. For example, if the COP of theclimate control system 10 is 2.5 with an ambient temperature of 30degrees Fahrenheit, then sufficient heat may be added to the insulatedfluid reservoir 400 via the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 tomaintain the fluid temperature in the insulated fluid reservoir 400,thereby maintaining the COP at this constant level.

The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 may be running, therebypumping heat from the evaporator heat exchanger 102 to the condenserheat exchanger 302, cooling the working fluid in the cold fluid chamberor evaporator reservoir 100 and heating the working fluid in the hotfluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300. By warming the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 with heated working fluid from theinsulated fluid reservoir 400, boiling of refrigerant in the evaporatorheat exchanger 102 is increased, and the heat pump 50 of the climatecontrol system 10 maintains a COP of greater than one, despite the factthat the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 itself only has a COPof one.

The at least one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308and/or the at least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316 may be active, using the heatedworking fluid in the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300passing through the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 and/or throughthe at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTCheater 318 to heat the interior of the vehicle and/or to defrost thevehicle windows. Additionally, the heat sink pump to hot fluid chambercontrol valve 510 may be open and the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506may be active, thereby circulating working fluid between the hot fluidchamber or condenser reservoir 300 and the liquid cooled heat sink 502,and preheating the electric drive motor 500 and associated powerelectronics. In this way, the electric drive motor 500 and associatedpower electronics are maintained within a temperature range that assuresbest efficiency when the power train begins to operate. Thispreconditioning operation may also include circulating working fluidbetween the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 and the drivetrain battery unit 608 in order to raise the drive train battery unit608 to a temperature suited for efficient operation under cold ambienttemperature conditions.

The heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 may remainclosed, the insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412 mayremain inactive, and the hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump 324 may remain inactive. Overall, the climate control system 10exhibits a much higher energy efficiency than that of an electric heateralone, and avoids the decrease in COP often associated with an airsourced heat pump operating in cold ambient temperatures, whichtypically need to be supplemented directly using PTC based electricheat.

As shown in FIG. 3, the climate control system 10 is again configuredfor preconditioning, this time under high ambient temperatures. Both ofthe shore power contactor 604 and the drive train battery contactor 610are open, and the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is inactive.The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 may be running, therebypumping heat from the evaporator heat exchanger 102 to the condenserheat exchanger 302, cooling the working fluid in the cold fluid chamberor evaporator reservoir 100 and heating the working fluid in the hotfluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300. The cold fluid chamber tovehicle interior cooling modules pump 110 may be active, using thecooled working fluid in the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir100 passing through the at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114to cool the interior of the vehicle. The at least one hot fluid chamberto cabin heat exchanger pump 308 and the at least one hot fluid chamberto defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316are inactive. The hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324is active, however, so that the at least one outside heat exchanger 326rejects heat from the working fluid of the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 to ambient.

The insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404 may beactive, thereby circulating working fluid between the cold fluid chamberor evaporator reservoir 100 and the insulated fluid reservoir 400, forthe purpose of storing cooled working fluid in the insulated fluidreservoir 400 for later use during operation. The insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412 remains inactive. Additionally,the heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 is open andthe liquid cooled heat sink pump 506 may be active, thereby circulatingworking fluid between the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100and the liquid cooled heat sink 502, and precooling the electric drivemotor 500 and associated power electronics. The heat sink pump to hotfluid chamber control valve 510 remains closed.

As shown in FIG. 4, the climate control system 10 is now configured foruse with the vehicle drivetrain operating under high ambienttemperatures. Both of the shore power contactor 604 and the drive trainbattery contactor 610 are again open, and the insulated fluid reservoirPTC heater 612 is inactive. The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200may again be running, thereby pumping heat from the evaporator heatexchanger 102 to the condenser heat exchanger 302, cooling the workingfluid in the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and heatingthe working fluid in the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300.The cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump 110 mayagain be active, using the cooled working fluid in the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 passing through the at least onevehicle interior cooling module 114 to cool the interior of the vehicle.The at least one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308 andthe at least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluidheat exchanger PTC Heater pump 316 are inactive. The hot fluid chamberto outside heat exchanger pump 324 is again active so that the at leastone outside heat exchanger 326 rejects heat from the working fluid ofthe hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 to ambient.

The insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412 may beactive and the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404inactive, thereby circulating working fluid between the hot fluidchamber or condenser reservoir 300 and the insulated fluid reservoir400, now for the purpose of using the cooled working fluid in theinsulated fluid reservoir 400 previously stored for later use duringoperation as an additional heat sink. This arrangement lowers thepressure of the refrigerant in the condenser, and increases theefficiency or COP of the heat pump 50. Alternately, the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404 may be active and the insulatedfluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412 inactive, therebycirculating working fluid between the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and the insulated fluid reservoir 400, now for the purposeof using the cooled working fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir 400previously stored for later use during operation to further cool theworking fluid in the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100.This arrangement reduces the boiling of the refrigerant in theevaporator, and also increases the efficiency or COP of the heat pump 50when in the cooling mode. The system and method may further choosewhether to circulate working fluid between the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 and the insulated fluid reservoir 400, orbetween the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and theinsulated fluid reservoir 400, depending on the present temperature ofthe working fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir 400. In eitherarrangement, the increased efficiency of the heat pump 50 reducesoverall power consumption of the climate control system 10 and helps topreserve the state of charge of the drive train battery unit 608.

The heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 may be openand the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506 may be active, therebycirculating working fluid between the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and the liquid cooled heat sink 502, and cooling theoperating electric drive motor 500 and associated power electronics.Consequently, the operating electric drive motor 500 and associatedpower electronics are maintained within a temperature range that assuresbest efficiency. The heat sink pump to hot fluid chamber control valve510 remains closed.

As shown in FIG. 5, the climate control system 10 is now configured foruse with the vehicle drivetrain operating under low ambienttemperatures. The shore power contactor 604 is open, but the drive trainbattery contactor 610 is closed and the insulated fluid reservoir PTCheater 612 is active, supplying supplemental heat to the working fluidin the insulated fluid reservoir 400 using energy from the drive trainbattery unit 608. The insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamberpump 404 may be active, circulating working fluid between the insulatedfluid reservoir 400 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir100, thereby increasing the temperature of the evaporator heat exchanger102 and raising the COP of the heat pump 50 when in the heating mode.The insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412 remainsinactive. The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 may again berunning, thereby pumping heat from the evaporator heat exchanger 102 tothe condenser heat exchanger 302, cooling the working fluid in the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and heating the working fluidin the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300. As before, bywarming the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 with heatedworking fluid from the insulated fluid reservoir 400, boiling ofrefrigerant in the evaporator heat exchanger 102 is increased, and theheat pump 50 of the climate control system 10 maintains a COP of greaterthan one, despite the fact that the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater612 itself only has a COP of one. The increased efficiency of the heatpump 50 again reduces overall power consumption of the climate controlsystem 10 and helps to preserve the state of charge of the drive trainbattery unit 608.

The at least one hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308and/or the at least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316 may be active, using the heatedworking fluid in the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300passing through the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 and/or throughthe at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTCheater 318 to heat the interior of the vehicle and/or to defrost thevehicle windows. The cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules pump 110 and the hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump 324 remain inactive. The heat sink pump to cold fluid chambercontrol valve 516 may be open and the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506may be active, thereby circulating working fluid between the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and the liquid cooled heat sink 502,now for the purpose of recouping heat from the operating electric drivemotor 500 and associated power electronics. This helps to further raisethe temperature of the evaporator heat exchanger 102 and raise the COPof the heat pump 50 when in the heating mode. The heat sink pump to hotfluid chamber control valve 510 remains closed.

Turning now to FIG. 6, a graphical representation of another embodimentof a Vehicle Climate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing a HeatPump is shown. A full electric or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown)again includes a climate control system 10 using a heat pump 50. Theheat pump 50 again includes a VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200,a condenser heat exchanger 302, an expansion valve 104, and anevaporator heat exchanger 102. The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor200 again discharges compressed gaseous refrigerant to the condenserheat exchanger 302 by way of a refrigerant discharge line 208. Thecompressed gaseous refrigerant again condenses and rejects heat to theworking fluid in a hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 usingthe condenser heat exchanger 302, and then proceeds to the expansionvalve 104 by way of the refrigerant liquid line 210. After passingthrough the expansion valve 104, the refrigerant again boils and absorbsheat from the working fluid in a cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 using the evaporator heat exchanger 102, before returningto the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 by way of therefrigerant suction line 206.

An insulated fluid reservoir 400 is again in fluid communication withthe cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 by way of aninsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber line 402 and a coldfluid chamber line to insulated fluid reservoir return line 406. Workingfluid may again be selectively circulated between the insulated fluidreservoir 400 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100using an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404. Theinsulated fluid reservoir is again in fluid communication with the hotfluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of an insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber line 410 and a hot fluid chamber line toinsulated fluid reservoir return line 414. Working fluid may again beselectively circulated between the insulated fluid reservoir 400 and thehot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 using an insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412.

Working fluid within the insulated fluid reservoir 400 may again beselectively heated by an insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612. Theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is again connected to a shorepower source 600 by way of a shore power line 602 having a shore powercontactor 604. As before, when the shore power contactor 604 is closed,the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 draws power from the shorepower source 600, and when the shore power contactor 604 is open, theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is isolated from the shorepower source 600. The insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is againalso connected to a drive train battery unit 608 by way of a drive trainbattery line 616 having a drive train battery contactor 610. As before,when the drive train battery contactor 610 is closed, the insulatedfluid reservoir PTC heater 612 draws power from the drive train batteryunit 608, and when the drive train battery contactor 610 is open, theinsulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 is isolated from the drivetrain battery unit 608. A charging system 606 again selectively connectsthe drive train battery unit 608 to the shore power source 600 as neededfor recharging.

At least one cabin heat exchanger 310 is again in fluid communicationwith the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of at leastone hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger line 306 and at least onecabin heat exchanger to hot fluid chamber return line 312. Working fluidmay again be selectively circulated between the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300 and the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310using a hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308. As before,at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater318 is in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber or condenserreservoir 300 by way of at least one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater line 314 and at least onedefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater to hot fluidchamber return line 320. Working fluid may again be selectivelycirculated between the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 andthe at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTCheater 318 using a hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluidheat exchanger PTC heater pump 316. Also, at least one outside heatexchanger 326 is again in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamberor condenser reservoir 300 by way of at least one hot fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger line 322 and at least one outside heat exchangerto hot fluid chamber return line 328. Working fluid may again beselectively circulated between the hot fluid chamber or condenserreservoir 300 and the at least one outside heat exchanger 326 using ahot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324.

As before, at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114 is in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 byway of at least one cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules line 108 and at least one vehicle interior cooling modules tocold fluid chamber return line 112. Working fluid may again beselectively circulated between the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module 114using a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump 110.Similarly, at least one outside heat exchanger 120 is in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 byway of at least one cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger line116 and at least one outside heat exchanger to cold fluid chamber returnline 122. Working fluid may be selectively circulated between the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and the at least one outsideheat exchanger 120 using a cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump 118.

The full electric or hybrid electric vehicle (not shown) includes anelectric drive motor 500 and associated power electronics, which isheated and/or cooled using a liquid cooled heat sink 502. The liquidcooled heat sink 502 is in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 by way of a heat sink pump to coldfluid chamber line 514 and a cold fluid chamber to heat sink return line518. The liquid cooled heat sink 502 is also in fluid communication withthe hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by way of a heat sinkpump to hot fluid chamber line 508 and a hot fluid chamber to heat sinkreturn line 512. Working fluid may be selectively circulated between theliquid cooled heat sink 502 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 by opening a heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber controlvalve 516 and using a liquid cooled heat sink pump 506. Working fluidmay also be selectively circulated between the liquid cooled heat sink502 and the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 by opening aheat sink pump to hot fluid chamber control valve 510 and using theliquid cooled heat sink pump 506.

As with the climate control system 10 illustrated in FIG. 1, the climatecontrol system 10 illustrated in FIG. 6 is again capable of providingcabin heating by operating the at least one hot fluid chamber to cabinheat exchanger pump 308 and the at least one hot fluid chamber todefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316 todeliver hot fluid to the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 and tothe at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTCheater 318, respectively, while the hot fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger pump 324 is not operating. The climate control system 10 isagain capable of providing cabin cooling by operating the hot fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324 and the at least one outsideheat exchanger 326, while the at least one hot fluid chamber to cabinheat exchanger pump 308 and the at least one hot fluid chamber todefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316 arenot operating. The insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump404 may in this case remain inactive. The cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump 110 and the at least one vehicle interiorcooling module 114 then deliver cooling to the cabin interior.

Furthermore, the climate control system 10 illustrated in FIG. 6 alsofunctions in moderately cold climate conditions, i.e.—climate conditionsin which temperatures are not less than 30 degrees Fahrenheit, toextract heat from the external environment to the cold fluid chamber orevaporator reservoir 100. This is accomplished by operating the coldfluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 118 and the at least oneoutside heat exchanger 120 to extract heat from the externalenvironment. The heat pump 50 then transfers this heat from the coldfluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 to the hot fluid chamber orcondenser reservoir 300, and the at least one hot fluid chamber to cabinheat exchanger pump 308 and the at least one hot fluid chamber todefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, andthe at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 and to the at least onedefrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater 318, deliverthe heat to the vehicle cabin.

Each of the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200, the insulatedfluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404, the insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412, the shore power contactor 604,the drive train battery contactor 610, the cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump 110, the hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump 308, the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, the hot fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger pump 324, the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506,cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 118, the heat sinkpump to hot fluid chamber control valve 510, and the heat sink pump tocold fluid chamber control valve 516 are again controlled directly orindirectly by a system controller 12. The system controller 12 is againconnected to the VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 by way of acompressor VFD control output 16, which is again connected to arefrigerant compressor VFD control input 204 of a refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202, which is in turn connected to theVFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200. The refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202 again receives power from the drivetrain battery unit 608 by way of a battery output to refrigerantcompressor 614, which is connected to the refrigerant compressorvariable frequency drive control 202 by way of a refrigerant compressorbattery input 212.

The system controller 12 is again connected to the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump 404, to the insulated fluidreservoir to hot fluid chamber pump 412, to the cold fluid chamber tovehicle interior cooling modules pump 110, to the hot fluid chamber tocabin heat exchanger pump 308, to the hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump 316, to the hot fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324, to the liquid cooled heatsink pump 506, and to the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump 118 by way of pump control outputs 20. The system controller 12 isagain connected to the shore power contactor 604 and to the drive trainbattery contactor 610 by way of contactor outputs 18. The systemcontroller 12 is again connected to the heat sink pump to hot fluidchamber control valve 510 and to the heat sink pump to cold fluidchamber control valve 516 by way of solenoid valve outputs 22. In orderto properly manage the climate control system 10, the system controller12 is again provided with temperature inputs 14 that are connected to acold fluid chamber temperature sensor 106, to a hot fluid chambertemperature sensor 304, to an insulated fluid reservoir temperaturesensor 408, and to a liquid cooled heat sink temperature sensor 504.

As shown in FIG. 6, the embodiment of the climate control system 10 isconfigured for use with the vehicle drivetrain operating under lowambient temperatures. The VFD heat pump refrigerant compressor 200 maybe running, thereby pumping heat from the evaporator heat exchanger 102to the condenser heat exchanger 302, cooling the working fluid in thecold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100 and heating the workingfluid in the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300. The at leastone hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump 308 and/or the atleast one hot fluid chamber to defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater pump 316 may be active, using the heated workingfluid in the hot fluid chamber or condenser reservoir 300 passingthrough the at least one cabin heat exchanger 310 and/or through the atleast one defrost/defog combination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater 318to heat the interior of the vehicle and/or to defrost the vehiclewindows. The cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump110 and the hot fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 324 remaininactive. The heat sink pump to cold fluid chamber control valve 516 maybe open and the liquid cooled heat sink pump 506 may be active, therebycirculating working fluid between the cold fluid chamber or evaporatorreservoir 100 and the liquid cooled heat sink 502, now for the purposeof recouping heat from the operating electric drive motor 500 andassociated power electronics. This helps to raise the temperature of theevaporator heat exchanger 102 and raise the COP of the heat pump 50 whenin the heating mode. The heat sink pump to hot fluid chamber controlvalve 510 remains closed.

In order to extract heat from the ambient environment under certainconditions and raise the COP of the heat pump 50, an outside heatexchanger 120 is in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber orevaporator reservoir 100 by way of a cold fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger line 116 and an outside heat exchanger to cold fluid chamberreturn line 122. A cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump 118circulates working fluid between the outside heat exchanger 120 and thecold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100, thereby raising thetemperature of the evaporator heat exchanger 102. This increases boilingof refrigerant in the evaporator heat exchanger 102 and increases theefficiency of the heat pump 50. The certain conditions under which theoutside heat exchanger 120 may be used to extract heat from the ambientenvironment may occur when the outside or ambient air temperatures areequal to or greater than approximately 40 degrees Fahrenheit and mayfurther extend up to equal to or lesser than approximately 60 degreesFahrenheit. Specifically, this range of outside or ambient airtemperatures may include the temperatures wherein the COP of the heatpump 50 would be greater than approximately 3.0. Therefore, in thisarrangement the embodiment of the climate control system 10 heat energyis recovered both from the operating electric drive motor 500 andassociated power electronics and from the ambient air by way of theoutside heat exchanger 120. It is noted that although in FIG. 6, theembodiment of the climate control system 10 is configured for use withthe vehicle drivetrain operating under low ambient temperatures, theclimate control system 10 may also utilize the outside heat exchanger120 to extract heat from the ambient environment when preconditioningunder low ambient temperatures.

The shore power contactor 604 is open and the drive train batterycontactor 610 may be open, so that the insulated fluid reservoir PTCheater 612 and the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump404 may be inactive. In this configuration, the embodiment of theclimate control system 10 shown in FIG. 6 relies entirely on the heatenergy recovered from the operating electric drive motor and associatedpower electronics and from the ambient air to raise the COP of the heatpump 50, reduce overall power consumption of the climate control system10, and preserve the state of charge of the drive train battery unit608. Alternately, the drive train battery contactor 610 may be closedand the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 active, supplyingsupplemental heat to the working fluid in the insulated fluid reservoir400 using energy from the drive train battery unit 608. In thisconfiguration, the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump404 is active, circulating working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir 400 and the cold fluid chamber or evaporator reservoir 100,thereby further increasing the temperature of the evaporator heatexchanger 102 over the increase provided by the heat energy recoveredfrom the operating electric drive motor, associated power electronics,and ambient air. This again further raising the COP of the heat pump 50when in the heating mode. The insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluidchamber pump 412 remains inactive. As before, by warming the cold fluidchamber or evaporator reservoir 100 with heated working fluid from theinsulated fluid reservoir 400, boiling of refrigerant in the evaporatorheat exchanger 102 is increased, and the heat pump 50 of the climatecontrol system 10 maintains a COP of greater than one, despite the factthat the insulated fluid reservoir PTC heater 612 itself only has a COPof one. The increased efficiency of the heat pump 50 delivers a higherCOP and further reduces overall power consumption of the climate controlsystem 10 and helps to preserve the state of charge of the drive trainbattery unit 608.

While the Vehicle Climate Control System with Heat Recovery Utilizing aHeat Pump, and methods for the use thereof, has been described withrespect to at least one embodiment, the system and method can be furthermodified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure, as demonstratedpreviously. This application is therefore intended to cover anyvariations, uses, or adaptations of the system and method using itsgeneral principles. Further, this application is intended to cover suchdepartures from the present disclosure as come within known or customarypractice in the art to which the disclosure pertains and which fallwithin the limits of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electric or hybrid electric vehicle having aclimate control system, comprising: a heat pump having a refrigerantcompressor, a condenser heat exchanger, an expansion valve, and anevaporator heat exchanger; the condenser heat exchanger exchanging heatbetween refrigerant and working fluid within a hot fluid chamber; theevaporator heat exchanger exchanging heat between refrigerant andworking fluid within a cold fluid chamber; an insulated fluid reservoirselectively in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber, theinsulated fluid reservoir having a Positive Temperature Coefficient(PTC) heater selectively powered by at least one of a drivetrain batteryunit and a shore power source; and a cold fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger selectively in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber.
 2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein: the insulated fluidreservoir is further selectively in fluid communication with the hotfluid chamber.
 3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein: the hot fluid chamberis selectively in fluid communication with at least one of: at least onecabin heat exchanger, at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater, and at least one ambient air heat exchanger. 4.The vehicle of claim 1, wherein: the cold fluid chamber is selectivelyin fluid communication with at least one vehicle interior coolingmodule.
 5. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising: a liquid cooledheat sink in fluid communication with at least one of the cold fluidchamber and the hot fluid chamber, the liquid cooled heat sink beingconnected to at least one of an electric drive motor of the vehicle andpower electronics connected to the electric drive motor.
 6. The vehicleof claim 1, further comprising: a shore power contactor operable toselectively connect the PTC heater to the shore power source; aninsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump operable to pumpworking fluid between the insulated fluid reservoir and the cold fluidchamber; a liquid cooled heat sink pump operable to pump working fluidby way of control valves between the hot fluid chamber and a liquidcooled heat sink connected to at least one of an electric drive motor ofthe vehicle, power electronics connected to the electric drive motor,and a drivetrain battery unit; a hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump operable to pump working fluid between the hot fluidchamber and at least one cabin heat exchanger; a cold fluid chamber tooutside heat exchanger pump operable to pump working fluid between thecold fluid chamber and the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger;a control system connected to the shore power contactor, to theinsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, to the liquidcooled heat sink pump, to the control valves, to the refrigerantcompressor of the heat pump, to the hot fluid chamber to cabin heatexchanger pump, and to the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerpump, the control system being configured to: selectively preconditionthe climate control system under low ambient temperature conditions bycalculating a quantity of BTUs to be added to a cabin of the vehicle,connecting the PTC heater to the shore power source using the shorepower contactor, activating the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluidchamber pump, activating the refrigerant compressor, activating the hotfluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump, activating the liquid cooledheat sink pump, configuring the control valves to place the liquidcooled heat sink in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber, andactivating the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump; andselectively precondition the climate control system one of:automatically whenever the vehicle is plugged into the shore powersource, using a preset timer, and upon initiation by an operator using aremote device.
 7. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising: aninsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump operable to pumpworking fluid between the insulated fluid reservoir and the cold fluidchamber; at least one vehicle interior cooling module selectively influid communication with the cold fluid chamber; a cold fluid chamber tovehicle interior cooling modules pump operable to pump working fluidbetween the cold fluid chamber and the at least one vehicle interiorcooling module; an ambient air heat exchanger selectively in fluidcommunication with the hot fluid chamber; a hot fluid chamber to ambientair heat exchanger pump operable to pump working fluid between the hotfluid chamber and the ambient air heat exchanger; a liquid cooled heatsink pump operable to pump working fluid by way of control valvesbetween the cold fluid chamber and a liquid cooled heat sink connectedto at least one of an electric drive motor of the vehicle, powerelectronics connected to the electric drive motor, and a drivetrainbattery unit; and a control system connected to the refrigerantcompressor of the heat pump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to coldfluid chamber pump, to the cold fluid chamber to vehicle interiorcooling modules pump, to the hot fluid chamber to ambient air heatexchanger pump, to the control valves, and to the liquid cooled heatsink pump, the control system being configured to: selectivelyprecondition the climate control system under high ambient temperatureconditions by calculating a quantity of BTUs to be removed from a cabinof the vehicle, activating the refrigerant compressor, activating theinsulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, activating the hotfluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, activating the coldfluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, activating theliquid cooled heat sink pump, and configuring the control valves toplace the liquid cooled heat sink in fluid communication with the coldfluid chamber; and selectively precondition the climate control systemone of: automatically whenever the vehicle is plugged into the shorepower source, using a preset timer, and upon initiation by an operatorusing a remote device.
 8. The vehicle of claim 1, further comprising: adrive train battery contactor operable to selectively connect the PTCheater to the drive train battery unit; an insulated fluid reservoir tocold fluid chamber pump operable to pump working fluid between theinsulated fluid reservoir and the cold fluid chamber; a liquid cooledheat sink pump operable to pump working fluid by way of control valvesbetween the cold fluid chamber and a liquid cooled heat sink connectedto at least one of an electric drive motor of the vehicle and powerelectronics connected to the electric drive motor; a hot fluid chamberto cabin heat exchanger pump operable to pump working fluid between thehot fluid chamber and at least one cabin heat exchanger; a cold fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump operable to pump working fluidbetween the cold fluid chamber and the cold fluid chamber to outsideheat exchanger; a control system connected to the drive train batterycontactor, to the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump,to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, to the control valves, to therefrigerant compressor of the heat pump, to the hot fluid chamber tocabin heat exchanger pump, and to the cold fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger pump, the control system being configured to: selectivelyoperate the climate control system under low ambient temperatureconditions with the vehicle operating by connecting the PTC heater tothe drive train battery unit using the drive train battery contactor,activating the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump,activating the refrigerant compressor, activating the hot fluid chamberto cabin heat exchanger pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sinkpump, configuring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heatsink in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber, and activatingthe cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump.
 9. The vehicle ofclaim 1, further comprising: an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluidchamber pump operable to pump working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir and the cold fluid chamber; an insulated fluid reservoir tohot fluid chamber pump operable to pump working fluid between theinsulated fluid reservoir and the hot fluid chamber; at least onevehicle interior cooling module selectively in fluid communication withthe cold fluid chamber; a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules pump operable to pump working fluid between the cold fluidchamber and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module; an ambientair heat exchanger selectively in fluid communication with the hot fluidchamber; a hot fluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump operableto pump working fluid between the hot fluid chamber and the ambient airheat exchanger; a liquid cooled heat sink pump operable to pump workingfluid by way of control valves between the cold fluid chamber and aliquid cooled heat sink connected to at least one of an electric drivemotor of the vehicle and power electronics connected to the electricdrive motor; a control system connected to the refrigerant compressor ofthe heat pump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamberpump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump, to thecold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, to the hotfluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, to the control valves,and to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, the control system beingconfigured to: selectively operate the climate control system under highambient temperature conditions with the vehicle operating by activatingthe refrigerant compressor, activating one of the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump and the insulated fluid reservoirto hot fluid chamber pump, activating the hot fluid chamber to ambientair heat exchanger pump, activating the cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sinkpump, and configuring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heatsink in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber.
 10. A climatecontrol system of an electric or hybrid electric vehicle, comprising: aheat pump having a refrigerant compressor, a condenser heat exchanger,an expansion valve, and an evaporator heat exchanger; the condenser heatexchanger exchanging heat between refrigerant and working fluid within ahot fluid chamber; the evaporator heat exchanger exchanging heat betweenrefrigerant and working fluid within a cold fluid chamber; an insulatedfluid reservoir selectively in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber, the insulated fluid reservoir having a PTC heater selectivelypowered by at least one of a drivetrain battery unit and a shore powersource; and a cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger selectivelyin fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber.
 11. The climatecontrol system of claim 10, wherein: the insulated fluid reservoir isfurther selectively in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber.12. The climate control system of claim 10, wherein: the hot fluidchamber is selectively in fluid communication with at least one of: atleast one cabin heat exchanger, at least one defrost/defog combinationfluid heat exchanger PTC heater, and at least one ambient air heatexchanger.
 13. The climate control system of claim 10, wherein: the coldfluid chamber is selectively in fluid communication with at least onevehicle interior cooling module.
 14. The climate control system of claim10, further comprising: a liquid cooled heat sink in fluid communicationwith at least one of the cold fluid chamber and the hot fluid chamber,the liquid cooled heat sink being connected to at least one of anelectric drive motor of the vehicle and power electronics connected tothe electric drive motor.
 15. The climate control system of claim 10,further comprising: a shore power contactor operable to selectivelyconnect the PTC heater to the shore power source; an insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump operable to pump working fluidbetween the insulated fluid reservoir and the cold fluid chamber; aliquid cooled heat sink pump operable to pump working fluid by way ofcontrol valves between the hot fluid chamber and a liquid cooled heatsink connected to at least one of an electric drive motor of the vehicleand power electronics connected to the electric drive motor; a hot fluidchamber to cabin heat exchanger pump operable to pump working fluidbetween the hot fluid chamber and at least one cabin heat exchanger; acold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump operable to pumpworking fluid between the cold fluid chamber and the cold fluid chamberto outside heat exchanger; a control system connected to the shore powercontactor, to the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump,to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, to the control valves, to therefrigerant compressor of the heat pump, to the hot fluid chamber tocabin heat exchanger pump, and to the cold fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger pump, the control system being configured to: selectivelyprecondition the climate control system under low ambient temperatureconditions by calculating a quantity of BTUs to be added to a cabin ofthe vehicle, connecting the PTC heater to the shore power source usingthe shore power contactor, activating the insulated fluid reservoir tocold fluid chamber pump, activating the refrigerant compressor,activating the hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump,activating the liquid cooled heat sink pump, configuring the controlvalves to place the liquid cooled heat sink in fluid communication withthe hot fluid chamber, and activating the cold fluid chamber to outsideheat exchanger pump; and selectively precondition the climate controlsystem one of: automatically whenever the vehicle is plugged into theshore power source, using a preset timer, and upon initiation by anoperator using a remote device.
 16. The climate control system of claim10, further comprising: an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluidchamber pump operable to pump working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir and the cold fluid chamber; at least one vehicle interiorcooling module selectively in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber; a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pumpoperable to pump working fluid between the cold fluid chamber and the atleast one vehicle interior cooling module; an ambient air heat exchangerselectively in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber; a hotfluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump operable to pumpworking fluid between the hot fluid chamber and the ambient air heatexchanger; a liquid cooled heat sink pump operable to pump working fluidby way of control valves between the cold fluid chamber and a liquidcooled heat sink connected to at least one of an electric drive motor ofthe vehicle and power electronics connected to the electric drive motor;a control system connected to the refrigerant compressor of the heatpump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, tothe cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, to thehot fluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, to the controlvalves, and to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, the control systembeing configured to: selectively precondition the climate control systemunder high ambient temperature conditions by calculating a quantity ofBTUs to be removed from a cabin of the vehicle, activating therefrigerant compressor, activating the insulated fluid reservoir to coldfluid chamber pump, activating the hot fluid chamber to ambient air heatexchanger pump, activating the cold fluid chamber to vehicle interiorcooling modules pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sink pump, andconfiguring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heat sink influid communication with the cold fluid chamber; and selectivelyprecondition the climate control system one of: automatically wheneverthe vehicle is plugged into the shore power source, using a presettimer, and upon initiation by an operator using a remote device.
 17. Theclimate control system of claim 10, further comprising: a drive trainbattery contactor operable to selectively connect the PTC heater to thedrive train battery unit; an insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluidchamber pump operable to pump working fluid between the insulated fluidreservoir and the cold fluid chamber; a liquid cooled heat sink pumpoperable to pump working fluid by way of control valves between the coldfluid chamber and a liquid cooled heat sink connected to at least one ofan electric drive motor of the vehicle and power electronics connectedto the electric drive motor; a hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchangerpump operable to pump working fluid between the hot fluid chamber and atleast one cabin heat exchanger; a cold fluid chamber to outside heatexchanger pump operable to pump working fluid between the cold fluidchamber and the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger; a controlsystem connected to the drive train battery contactor, to the insulatedfluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, to the liquid cooled heatsink pump, to the control valves, to the refrigerant compressor of theheat pump, to the hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump, and tothe cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump, the controlsystem being configured to: selectively operate the climate controlsystem under low ambient temperature conditions with the vehicleoperating by connecting the PTC heater to the drive train battery unitusing the drive train battery contactor, activating the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, activating the refrigerantcompressor, activating the hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchangerpump, activating the liquid cooled heat sink pump, configuring thecontrol valves to place the liquid cooled heat sink in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber, and activating the cold fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump.
 18. The climate control systemof claim 10, further comprising: an insulated fluid reservoir to coldfluid chamber pump operable to pump working fluid between the insulatedfluid reservoir and the cold fluid chamber; an insulated fluid reservoirto hot fluid chamber pump operable to pump working fluid between theinsulated fluid reservoir and the hot fluid chamber; at least onevehicle interior cooling module selectively in fluid communication withthe cold fluid chamber; a cold fluid chamber to vehicle interior coolingmodules pump operable to pump working fluid between the cold fluidchamber and the at least one vehicle interior cooling module; an ambientair heat exchanger selectively in fluid communication with the hot fluidchamber; a hot fluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump operableto pump working fluid between the hot fluid chamber and the ambient airheat exchanger; a liquid cooled heat sink pump operable to pump workingfluid by way of control valves between the cold fluid chamber and aliquid cooled heat sink connected to at least one of an electric drivemotor of the vehicle and power electronics connected to the electricdrive motor; a control system connected to the refrigerant compressor ofthe heat pump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamberpump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump, to thecold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, to the hotfluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, to the control valves,and to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, the control system beingconfigured to: selectively operate the climate control system under highambient temperature conditions with the vehicle operating by activatingthe refrigerant compressor, activating one of the insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump and the insulated fluid reservoirto hot fluid chamber pump, activating the hot fluid chamber to ambientair heat exchanger pump, activating the cold fluid chamber to vehicleinterior cooling modules pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sinkpump, and configuring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heatsink in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber.
 19. A method ofproviding climate control in an occupant compartment of an electric orhybrid electric vehicle, comprising the steps of: providing a heat pumphaving a refrigerant compressor, a condenser heat exchanger, anexpansion valve, and an evaporator heat exchanger; exchanging heatbetween refrigerant and working fluid within a hot fluid chamber by wayof the condenser heat exchanger; exchanging heat between refrigerant andworking fluid within a cold fluid chamber by way of the evaporator heatexchanger; selectively placing an insulated fluid reservoir in fluidcommunication with the cold fluid chamber using an insulated fluidreservoir to cold fluid chamber pump; selectively placing the insulatedfluid reservoir in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber usingan insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluid chamber pump; selectivelyheating working fluid within the insulated fluid reservoir using a PTCheater by selectively powering the PTC heater from at least one of adrivetrain battery unit by way of a drive train battery connector andfrom a shore power source by way of a shore power contactor; Selectivelyplacing the hot fluid chamber in fluid communication with at least oneof: at least one cabin heat exchanger using a hot fluid chamber to cabinheat exchanger pump, at least one defrost/defog combination fluid heatexchanger PTC heater using a hot fluid chamber to defrost/defogcombination fluid heat exchanger PTC heater pump, and at least oneambient air heat exchanger using a hot fluid chamber to ambient air heatexchanger pump; selectively placing the cold fluid chamber in fluidcommunication with at least one vehicle interior cooling module using acold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump; selectivelyplacing a liquid cooled heat sink in fluid communication with at leastone of the cold fluid chamber and the hot fluid chamber using a liquidcooled heat sink pump and at least one control valve, the liquid cooledheat sink being connected to at least one of an electric drive motor ofthe vehicle and power electronics connected to the electric drive motor;and selectively placing a cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchangerin fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber using a cold fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump.
 20. The method of claim 19,further comprising the steps of: Connecting a control system to therefrigerant compressor of the heat pump, to the shore power contactor,to the drive train battery contactor, to the insulated fluid reservoirto cold fluid chamber pump, to the insulated fluid reservoir to hotfluid chamber pump, to the liquid cooled heat sink pump, to the controlvalves, to the hot fluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump, to thecold fluid chamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, to the hotfluid chamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, and to the cold fluidchamber to outside heat exchanger pump, the control system beingconfigured to selectively at least one of: precondition the climatecontrol system under low ambient temperature conditions by calculating aquantity of BTUs to be added to a cabin of the vehicle, connecting thePTC heater to the shore power source using the shore power contactor,activating the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump,activating the refrigerant compressor, activating the hot fluid chamberto cabin heat exchanger pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sinkpump, configuring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heatsink in fluid communication with the hot fluid chamber, and activatingthe cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump; precondition theclimate control system under high ambient temperature conditions bycalculating a quantity of BTUs to be removed from a cabin of thevehicle, activating the refrigerant compressor, activating the insulatedfluid reservoir to cold fluid chamber pump, activating the hot fluidchamber to ambient air heat exchanger pump, activating the cold fluidchamber to vehicle interior cooling modules pump, activating the liquidcooled heat sink pump, and configuring the control valves to place theliquid cooled heat sink in fluid communication with the cold fluidchamber; operate the climate control system under low ambienttemperature conditions with the vehicle operating by connecting the PTCheater to the drive train battery unit using the drive train batterycontactor, activating the insulated fluid reservoir to cold fluidchamber pump, activating the refrigerant compressor, activating the hotfluid chamber to cabin heat exchanger pump, activating the liquid cooledheat sink pump, configuring the control valves to place the liquidcooled heat sink in fluid communication with the cold fluid chamber, andactivating the cold fluid chamber to outside heat exchanger pump; andoperate the climate control system under high ambient temperatureconditions with the vehicle operating by activating the refrigerantcompressor, activating one of the insulated fluid reservoir to coldfluid chamber pump and the insulated fluid reservoir to hot fluidchamber pump, activating the hot fluid chamber to ambient air heatexchanger pump, activating the cold fluid chamber to vehicle interiorcooling modules pump, activating the liquid cooled heat sink pump, andconfiguring the control valves to place the liquid cooled heat sink influid communication with the cold fluid chamber.